The invention relates to a bale collector, comprising a frame provided with wheels, bale-carrying means, coupling means which are suitable for coupling the frame to a mobile baler in order to receive essentially block-shaped bales onto the carrying means from a bale outlet of the baler via a front end--viewed in the direction of travel--of the carrying means, blocking means at a rear end of the carrying means, and locking means, in such a way that in a collecting state the blocking means collect and retain a number of bales on the carrying means, and in an unloading state the locking means release the blocking means in order to allow through and deposit on the ground bales collected on the carrying means.
A bale collector of the abovementioned type is known in practice. The known bale collector is not suitable for stacking bales, and the known bale collector is not safe to use if the baler has a relatively low bale outlet, in view of possible obstacles on the road obstacles on the road or the ground over which the collector is travelling. Besides, the carrying means of the known bale collector have an essentially horizontal, flat bottom, on which bales being pushed along encounter relatively great friction, so that the pushing of following bales causes a counterpressure towards the press, with the result that the bales are unintentionally pressed more tightly, and damage may even occur to the baler. These shortcomings are found particularly in the case of relatively heavy bales, for example silage bales predried grass, which are generally 1.6 m long, 1.2 m wide and 0.7 m high, and can weigh 500 to 800 kg. The friction forces occurring between such bales and the flat bottom can be considerable. Furthermore, if such bales were to be dropped onto a low flat bottom of the collector, with a view to other bales being slid over them there at a later stage, there is a risk of the bottom bales tilting, or even turning over completely, when they are being deposited on the bottom, which could impede a further supply of bales onto the collector.